Joanne Olney

The relationship between creativity and wellbeing has alway interested me, this was most evident during my former career as an Occupational Therapist. Now, in my role as an artist, these two elements have become an integral part of my motivation to create, with the ‘doing’ often as important as the outcome. I firmly believe that natural curiosity and creative pursuits are essential to healthy living, regardless of age or education. Horizon lines captivate me, I imagine they represent the ‘threshold’ between here and the unknown. The concept of ‘beyond’, universal influences and chance all intrigue me, along with thoughts about life cycles, impermanence and the traces we leave behind. Time, relationships and legacy have become increasingly important, all inform my work and each are significant in their own right. The transient nature of light is a recurring theme, how it affects my perception of the landscape, the atmosphere and unique quality of a particular place. I love photography and often use my images as a reference point, sometimes including them within my mixed media pieces. My artwork is based in semi-abstraction, purposefully balanced between representational and the imagined. Multiple layers provide a history, often revealing subtle reminders of what has gone before. Natural colours, spacious compositions, delicate and gestural marks are all essential parts of my visual language. I aspire to create evocative pieces that convey a sense of wonder and ultimately, an appreciation of the natural world.